NATO’s Romania likely discovers drone debris on its territory near Ukraine border – POLITICO

Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said the probable drone crash was not the first incident, but he hoped it would be “the last.”

“At the moment we have no casualties or any problems of this type,” he said, Romanian media reported. “We hope that they will be, I repeat, as small as possible, or that they will avoid these events as much as possible.”

Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, regularly attacks Ukrainian ports in its southwestern region near the border with NATO member Romania.

It would not be the first time that explosives fired during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war against Ukraine have landed in foreign countries, including EU and NATO member states.

In November 2022, NATO held crisis talks after a missile landed in Poland, although US President Joe Biden later said it was unlikely it was fired from Russia .

In September 2023, another Russian drone was discovered on Romanian soil near the Danube, triggering the fury of Romanian officials. Shortly after, Bulgaria, also a NATO member, reported finding a suicide drone on its territory, but could not confirm its origin.

As a NATO member, Romania is protected by Article 5 of the alliance’s military treaties, which states that an attack on one member will be considered an attack on all members.

This story has been updated.